The Second Machine Age

According to a July 2012 story in the New York Times, “The combined level of robotic chatter on the world’s wireless networks . . . is likely soon to exceed that generated by the sum of all human voice conversations taking place on wireless grids.”11 (Location 1009)

According to a July 2012 story in the New York Times, “The combined level of robotic chatter on the world’s wireless networks . . . is likely soon to exceed that generated by the sum of all human voice conversations taking place on wireless grids.” (Location 1014)

Taken as a group, the top 20 percent got not 100 percent of the increase, but more than 100 percent. Their gains included not only the trillions of dollars of wealth newly created in the economy but also some additional wealth that was shifted in their direction from the bottom 80 percent. (Location 1963)

To capture these distinctions, work by our MIT colleagues Daron Acemoglu and David Autor suggests that work can be divided into a two-by-two matrix: cognitive versus manual and routine versus nonroutine.25 (Location 2069)

To capture these distinctions, work by our MIT colleagues Daron Acemoglu and David Autor suggests that work can be divided into a two-by-two matrix: cognitive versus manual and routine versus nonroutine. (Location 2077)

“One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man.” —Elbert Hubbard (Location 2190)

“The era of bell curve distributions that supported a bulging social middle class is over and we are headed for the power-law distribution of economic opportunities. Education per se is not going to make up the difference.”26 (Location 2407)